Gabe sneaks a quick peek at Jonathan before continuing, “Jonathan was lost when Damien left. He even tried looking for him. But when he couldn’t find him, he kind of guessed that Damien had disappeared and that I knew where he was—obviously, because I knew where he was and my pretense of a worried friend was faltered. He took that as a betrayal and my friendship with him has never been the same. And now...”

“And now Damien’s back,” I complete his unfinished sentence.

“Yes, Damien’s back and has changed. He’s no longer interested in any of the activities that excited him earlier. And to my knowledge, he’s refused every invite Jonathan has extended to him, be it a party or a sporting activity. So, you can see why Jonathan is sore about this entire thing.”

“He lost a friend, Gabe, for five years and now that his friend is back, he’s behaving different. Obviously, Jonathan is hurt and confused.”

Gabriel starts to say something, but is interrupted by the woman on his right.  He responds to her and is soon engaged in conversation with her.

My eyes rest on Damien as I process this new information. I was so naively in love with Damien that I never quite probed into his life before he met me. He told me Gabriel was his closest friend and that no one else in his past mattered, and I accepted that. I accepted every lie he fed me. A loose strand of hair falls on my face and I shove it away with an exasperated sigh.

Damien’s seated a few tables ahead of us, sandwiched between his mother and Celia Parker who, every now and then, whispers in his ear. My blood boils each time I see her move closer to him.

I’m itching to remove her from Damien’s side. But since I can’t do that, I busy myself looking at one of the jewelry catalogs I find on the table. I realize that an auction is going to be held tonight and this catalog shows a detailed listing of all the jewelry pieces that are going to be available for the auction. All of them have been donated and several of them are vintage Annette & Co. pieces. The proceeds of every sale will go towards the charities favored by the Kittridge family.

“There’s going to be a jewelry auction, right?” I ask Gabriel.

“Yes!”

“So, where is the jewelry displayed?”

“They’re all wearing it.”

“What do you mean?” I ask with a frown.

“You see that lady on our right in the green gown?” Gabriel points at a tall woman, who looks in her early fifties and then points at the catalog. “She’s wearing the necklace shown in this picture.”

“Oh!” I finally understand now.